Auntologies: Queer Aesthetics and South Asian Aunties
Institute for Diversity in the Arts (IDA)
Queer Student Resources
Department of Art & Art History
Stanford Global Studies Division
Department of Theater & Performance Studies
Film and Media Studies
Stanford Humanities Center
615 Crothers Way, Stanford, CA 94305
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The auntie is a ubiquitous figure in South Asian cultural production. At the threshold of the nuclear family she has the capacity to both disrupt and consolidate heteronorms. This talk examines the performances of British Asian actress Meera Syal and the visual works of Indian Canadian artist Meera Sethi to identify how the aunty's aesthetic practices open up queer possibilities, instead of foreclosing them.
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About the Speaker
Kareem Khubchandani is Associate Professor in theater, dance, and performance studies at Tufts University. He is the author of the award-winning Ishtyle: Accenting Gay Indian Nightlife, co-editor of the Lambda Literary-nominated Queer Nightlife (University of Michigan Press, 2021), and author of Decolonize Drag (OR Books, forthcoming 2023). He serves as associate editor for GLQ, and was guest editor of “Critical Aunty Studies” a special issue of Text and Performance Quarterly, “Transnational Figurations of the South Asian Aunty,” a special issue of South Asia, and “Queer Pedagogy in Theatre and Performance” a special issue of Theatre Topics.
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This event is also co-sponsored by ITALIC, an arts-minded, residence-based academic program for first year Stanford students.